Best Ecommerce Website Builders

Best Ecommerce Website Builders (2024 Review)

Now is an optimal time to start an ecommerce business. Online businesses saw an increase of 900 million shoppers between 2020 and 2021. The number will rise each year as internet connectivity improves. You don’t have to risk losing out on a chance to increase your income. A fully equipped online business website helps you keep pace with growing sales demands.

This article reviews the best ecommerce site builders to help your business stay competitive and increase its revenue. Also included are answers to frequently asked questions about ecommerce website builders.

The Importance of Ecommerce Websites

Online shopping is more than a trend. It is a way of life in today’s society. About 80% of the U.S. population shops online. Analysts predict $4.5 trillion in U.S. ecommerce sales in 2024.

Ecommerce platforms are websites that use special software specifically designed for online shopping. An optimized website lets you handle a large volume of transactions in this market. Regular websites don’t have enough advanced features for you to keep up with customer demand and other sellers.

Ecommerce websites allow you to control all aspects of selling on one platform. For example, you can list your products, invoice the customer, and process payments from one location. Other ecommerce solutions include shipping, refunds, and customer service.

There are many popular website builders available to online sellers. Developers have made the latest ecommerce platforms user-friendly with more advanced features. A seller can choose from a wide range of platforms to fit the size and nature of their business. In addition, every seller can find a pricing plan within their budget.

Some sellers need a builder for beginners that provides all the necessary features without being too complicated to use. The good news is that there are many options to choose from. This article lists the best easy-to-use ecommerce website builders that offer web hosting, shopping carts, and all the tools sellers need to run their online stores successfully.

What to Look For

There are hundreds of decent ecommerce website builders on the internet. However, your goal is to build a website that offers the best features possible for you and your potential customer. Several key factors identify a great online store builder platform, including the following:

• The best ecommerce platforms are simple for beginners without a graphic design degree or a ton of technical knowledge. The setup instructions are clear and accurate. In addition, tools and themes can be easily customized to blend the website with your existing brand.
• Another essential feature is comprehensive selling options. The builder should allow you to sell 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. It should also let you sell both digital and physical products. And,  managing sales taxes and shipping products internationally shouldn’t be a big deal.
• The ideal ecommerce platform offers a range of integration tools that work with the apps you use for your business. For example, your platform should have social media integration if you sell on third-party apps like Facebook and Instagram.
• The best full-service ecommerce platforms include backend administration services, such as tracking inventory, managing orders, and shipping goods.
• The ecommerce platform you choose should be mobile-friendly to give customers access to your store from a mobile device.
• Look for an ecommerce website builder with several payment gateways to give your customer various payment method options.
• Find an online store builder that offers a built-in analytics system to monitor and evaluate sales, conversion rates, and other aspects of your store’s performance.
• Choose a platform with a variety of reasonably priced monthly payment plans. A basic plan includes monthly charges and processing fees. The costs for extra features, like app subscriptions, are added to the final pricing plan.

Ecommerce Website Builder Plan Fees

For beginners and advanced users, pricing and fees for ecommerce solutions can be a complicated subject. Your first concern may be to stick to the budget in your business plan. Next, you should know the types of fees and what services they pay for. Platforms charge different prices for the services they offer.

The fees you pay to use an online store builder include:

• Monthly fee. This is the amount your plan costs on a month-to-month basis. The cost only covers the use of the platform. Many platforms offer a free 14-day trial or a longer trial period at no cost. The price for paid monthly fees ranges starts from as little as $10 for a basic plan to much higher for premium plans.
• Fees for payment gateways. This portion of your payment covers the cost of credit card processing fees. The average price for payment gateways is about 3% plus an additional fee, usually less than $0.35. Payment gateway fees decrease with higher volumes. In addition, some platforms offer in-house payment gateways at an added cost to the monthly fee.
• Additional transaction fees. These are fees added to your monthly pricing plan if you use a different payment gateway. The cost is around 2% of the transaction.

Here’s an illustration of a monthly ecommerce plan bill:

Let’s say you sign up for an online store builder basic plan that costs $30 per month. The transaction fees cost 3% plus $0.30 for each transaction. You sell 10 products for $10 each. Your customers pay for their items by credit card. You use the payment gateway provided by the platform.

Now, we calculate the total of your monthly fee ($30) plus $33 in transaction fees ($100 x 3%=$3 plus 100 x $0.30=$30). So your payment for the month would be $63.

Processing Ecommerce Payments

The only way to make money with your store is by completing sales. Your customers must use payment methods to pay for goods and services. Offering a customer a variety of payment options leads to a more convenient shopping experience and more revenue. The opportunity to make sales increases when customers have more ways to pay for their orders.

There are numerous payment methods you can accept in your online store, including:

• Debit and credit cards
• Mobile payments
• Bank transfer
• Payment processors

There are multiple payment options within each payment method. Braintree by PayPal, Shopify Payments, and Stripe are among the most popular payment processors. These online services facilitate accepting major credit cards and mobile app payment methods.

Offering your customers too many payment options can be risky, however. A long list of payment options may complicate the checkout process. Instead, you must learn how to strike a balance. This can be done by providing the most commonly used payment options.

You can determine which payment options customers prefer by observing their shopping behavior. Look at the locations where your customers live. You may find that preferred payment methods vary by region. Additionally, take note of the payment choices used by recurring payment customers versus one-time buyers.

Pay close attention to how customers pay for your products. Then, make changes according to the trends you observe. Choosing the correct payment methods can significantly affect your profit margin.

Ecommerce Terminology

Maybe this is your first time using an online store builder. If so, some words and terms commonly associated with building ecommerce websites may be unfamiliar. Therefore, we have included a short glossary that you can use to search for ecommerce solutions.

Common words and phrases include:

Analytics

A strategy that collects, measures, and analyzes website data. Analytics help you understand visitor behavior and use the information to create an improved user experience.

Dropshipping 

The method is used to fulfill orders without keeping products in stock. Dropshipping refers to the process of purchasing a sold item from a manufacturer or wholesaler. In turn, the third party ships it directly to the customer.

Email Marketing

This refers to promoting your products to a targeted audience via email.

Inventory

The products you have on hand to sell in your ecommerce store.

Landing Page

The first page the visitor sees when they click the link to your store. For example, landing pages often contain prompts for visitors to join an email list.

Merchant Account Provider

An online ecommerce servicer that processes credit and debit cards. Merchant account providers place a temporary hold on the customer’s funds until they become deposited into your business bank account.

Payment Gateway

A service is provided to connect you with a merchant account provider to process credit card payments.

Point-of-Sale (POS)

Software utilized in inventory management, payment processing, adding products, and other tasks. For example, a cash register is an example of a physical POS.

SEO

An acronym for Search Engine Optimization. SEO is the process of improving your store’s visibility in search engine results.

Shopping Cart

A virtual representation of the products or services the customer intends to purchase.

Transactions

A record of the actions taken during the ordering process.

The Top 10 Ecommerce Website Builders

Every seller is unique and wants a platform that caters to their specific needs. For example, some people sell in large volumes and need a bigger platform. On the other hand, some sellers only offer digital products, while others use dropshipping services. Fortunately, there are a wide variety of ecommerce platforms to meet the unique requirements of every seller.

Here are the 10 best ecommerce website builder platforms available:

1. Shopify

Shopify is seeing substantial growth statistics and is one of the most popular website builders globally. From 2019 to 2020, the number of people that purchased products from Shopify merchants increased by 52%. The total revenue increase was 47% for the same period. Several reasons contribute to Spotify’s success.

Sellers find that Shopify is easy for beginners to use. It offers a long list of convenient features for all business types and sizes. Shopify users can choose a free pricing plan or paid plans with limited options starting at only $29.00 a month. This ecommerce site builder also offers a variety of more expensive plans to meet the needs of advanced users.

Pros

• Easy to set up and use
• Excellent customer service
• Customizable templates and themes
• Various marketing tools
• Comprehensive analytics reporting

Cons

• Third-party app required for international currency processing
• Expensive add-on apps

2. Wix

Wix is among the best ecommerce platforms because sellers find it is easy and convenient to use. Wix users have HTML code access to design their ecommerce website from a blank canvas. In addition, Wix ecommerce sellers can choose from over 800 professional templates and themes.

Wix offers a wide variety of pricing plans, including a basic plan for $23 per month. The Business Unlimited plan is $27 per month and is specially designed with features to help grow a business. Finally, the Business VIP includes the full suite of Wix features for $49 per month.

Sellers can upload unlimited products and descriptions to their stores. Advanced features include social media integration and abandoned cart emails to remind customers about products left in their shopping cart. In addition, Wix ecommerce supports multiple currencies. The platform also offers dropshipping, product reviews, loyalty programs, and many other features.

Pros

• Advanced marketing/development tools
• 1-year free domain registration
• Free Google AdWords voucher
• Sell on multiple channels
• 24/7 customer service

Cons

• Templates are not interchangeable
• Forced Wix branding with the free plan
• Cannot export Wix websites

3. BigCommerce

BigCommerce is among the top-rated ecommerce solutions for large businesses. Multinational big-name companies use this powerful platform to sell products and services using a wide variety of business tools. BigCommerce is also an affordable online store option for small businesses.

Standard pricing for an online store is $29.95/month. A plus plan costs $79.95 per month. A pro plan is available for large-volume businesses with $400k in online sales per month. The monthly charge for the pro plan is $299.95. There is a $150/month cost for each additional $200,000 in monthly sales.

The platform’s financial tools include a variety of payment processors, including PayPal and Stripe. Users can also configure stores to accept payments by check, money order, or bank transfer. In addition, BigCommerce ensures that sellers do not have a huge tax liability at the end of the year. Setting up sales tax is required as part of the onboarding process regardless of the business size.

Pros

• Suitable for large or small businesses
• Responsive mobile website
• Offers customer access management
• Can list products on other marketplaces

Cons

• Free templates are not easily editable
• Limited annual sales without upgrading

4. Chargify

Chargify is a leading ecommerce platform specializing in websites for B2B SaaS companies, which sell software to other businesses. Chargify’s special services include repeated billing and subscription management. In addition, users can integrate with some of the best platforms, such as Zapier, HubSpot, and Salesforce.

The Essential payment plan includes features like business intelligence and numerous add-ons for $599 per month. Standard plans include advanced analytics and integrations for $1,499 per month. Users can also purchase a specialized plan with technical architects, quarterly consultations, and bespoke integrations. This is known as the Specialized plan and costs $3,499 per month.

Pros

• Financial integrations, including QuickBooks
• Fast and assisted onboarding
• Customized pricing plans
• Wide variety of payment gateways
• Excellent analytics reporting

Cons

• Expensive plans
• Limited email and invoice customization

5. Weebly

Weebly is a convenient free website builder for beginners and advanced users. One of the best features of this ecommerce platform is the customization features. Weebly has more than 60 responsive online store templates. In addition, you can easily customize text boxes, galleries, and other website displays with Weebly’s drag-and-drop builder.

This ecommerce website builder offers a wide selection of marketing and shipping tools. Website builders can list unlimited products and offer their customers gift cards and coupons. Other features include email templates and abandoned cart emails to remind customers that they have products in their carts.

Monthly pricing plans are $5 a month for the Connect plan and $12 a month for the Pro plan. The Business plan is $25 per month.

Pros

• Suited for small and large businesses
• 1-year free domain registration
• Email marketing
• Export/Import features
• Google AdWords Voucher

Cons

• A small selection of SEO tools
• Few payment gateways

6. Square Online

The Square Online platform offers ecommerce solutions for businesses to sell physical and digital products. Users can easily track their inventory in real-time using invoicing software. Square Online offers automatic payment reminders, recurring invoices, and digital receipts.

Other features include digital contract processing and customer detail management. You can monitor estimates, invoices, and payments from the dashboard. Square Online’s easy-to-use marketing feature lets you send email promotions. Additional features include coupon and gift card creation and customer loyalty rewards programs.

Pros

• Easy to use
• Send unlimited invoices
• Detailed business reports
• Variety of affordable plans
• Suitable for many business types

Cons

• Higher transaction fees for other payment gateways
• Customization is limited

7. WordPress

WordPress tops the list of globally popular website builders. Forty-three percent of ecommerce site builders use this platform to create and manage their stores via Woocommerce. Affordability and convenience are among the reasons for the popularity of this platform.

A free plan with limited features and WordPress advertising on the website is available for beginners. Personal plans cost $4 per month. They include web hosting, unlimited emails, and other features for this affordable price. Premium plans cost $8 per month, and business plans cost $25 per month. The WordPress ecommerce plan is $45 per month. All WordPress plans require annual billing.

Features include excellent SEO tools, a large selection of beautiful templates, and inventory management. WordPress offers social media integration, payment services, and other valuable features.

Pros

• Export/import files
• $100 in advertising credits
• Free custom domain name
• Easily customizable
• Mobile compatibility

Cons

• No blank canvas feature
• No backup and security provided

8. Ecwid

Ecwid is an ideal ecommerce website builder for beginners with limited initial investment funds. This platform offers a free plan to sell your first 10 products. After that, the seller can upgrade to an affordable pricing plan as their business grows.

Sellers can choose from three month-to-month pricing tiers. The Venture plan is $15, the Business plan is $35, and the Unlimited plan is $99 per month. In addition, Ecwid offers a 17% discount to sellers that select an annual payment plan.

The platform assists sellers with the setup process using an interactive dashboard. New users go through a step-by-step setup process. This process includes adding products, localizing the store, and selecting delivery options and payment choices in less than 15 minutes. In addition, free Ecwid ecommerce sites offer dozens of customization options to improve your online sales presence.

Additional features include integrations with social media and automatic tax calculation. Sellers can offer discounts and track inventory. Ecwid lets you upgrade to plans with more features as your business grows.

Pros

• Manage website via mobile app
• Permanent free account availability
• Sync store across markets
• No fees except transactions
• Integrates with Zapier

Cons

• Phone support for higher plans only
• iOS required for mobile POS integration

9. Site123

Site123 is a good ecommerce website builder for beginners because it is very easy to use. The editing software is designed for beginners with no technical expertise or design experience. This ecommerce site builder includes email marketing, social media integration, and multi-language support.

One of the best features of a Site123 ecommerce website is responsiveness. Customers get a quality user experience on whatever device they use to view the online store. Site123 offers HTML that redirects customers from the seller’s old site, automatic sitemap creation, and other SEO features.

The website offers free web hosting on a dedicated and secured server. Paid plans start at $12.80 per month. In addition, sellers can upgrade to Professional and Gold plans that unlock additional features.

Pros

• Includes blogs with regular updates
• Unlimited sites
• Unlimited web pages
• Free icon and image libraries

Cons

• Limited navigation menu
• No telephone support

10. Web.com

Web.com lets beginners create a professional online store using a comprehensive set of drag-and-drop tools. This program offers ecommerce solutions that include order processing, built-in marketing tools, and sales management assistance. Sellers can also manage newsletters, email campaigns, and customer lists.

Web.com has more than 300 unique ecommerce store themes. This site builder lets you upload unlimited products and images. Advanced features include impressive analytics, SEO, order processing, and many more ecommerce website options. In addition, you can choose from a variety of pricing plans to build your online store.

Web.com offers a complete professional website design with SEO-optimized copy for a $1,500 setup fee.

Pros

• $1.95 for the first month
• Unlimited products
• Several customer support options
• Easy setup

Cons

• No free plans
• Limited customization tools

FAQ

Ecommerce web builders help you create and manage your online store, whether you are a new seller or an established brand. Here are some common questions and answers from online sellers about ecommerce website builders.

How Much Should I Pay For an Ecommerce Platform As a New Seller?

Start slowly if you’ve never sold before. You can choose one of the less expensive plans first. However, make sure the platform fits your business needs. Compare less expensive but popular website builders and select an option with suitable features that fit your budget.

What POS and Payment Options Should Be Used On Ecommerce Websites?

All ecommerce website builders have different online payment processing options. The best platforms allow you to accept major payment methods. In addition, a good online store builder offers a variety of payment options, fraud and information security protection, and other financial tools.

Which Ecommerce Builder Tools Will Help Grow My Business?

Ecommerce platforms offer marketing tools to let people know about your brand. Find an online store builder that provides email marketing, Google ad credits, and SEO tools to increase your audience.

How Do I Learn About Who Visits My Online Store?

Analytic tools provide insights into your customer base. For example, you can learn how many people visit your store, what they buy, and their general location. This helps you reach customers more effectively when utilizing the marketing tools.

Can I Make My Store More Visually Appealing If I Don’t Have Design Skills?

Yes. Online website builders offer design flexibility for people with all levels of design experience. In addition, customizable templates let you improve your site’s aesthetics and create themes that blend in with your brand.

Recommended Ecommerce Solutions

Each ecommerce platform in our top 10 deserves a place on the list. However, some stand out regarding features, pricing, and other areas. The website builder platforms we recommend are listed below, along with our primary reasons for choosing them.

These are the best-of-the-best in top ecommerce store builder sites:

Ecwid

Ecwid is the best choice for new online stores. The platform is simple to use with all the features you need to run an online business. You can begin with a free plan for as long as you need and upgrade as your business grows.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is the best choice for large-volume businesses. The platform has a good reputation for providing ecommerce solutions to major corporations. At the same time, this website builder offers affordable plans for small businesses that have most of the same features.

Chargify

Chargify is the best choice for B2B SaaS websites. This ecommerce store builder is ideal for creating a site that requires features like subscription management, multiple payment gateways, and recurrent billing.

Wix

Wix is the best choice for creating a complete ecommerce store. Users have a vast array of beautiful templates to choose from. In addition, advanced users with HTML knowledge can use the code access feature to design their store from a blank canvas.

Square Online

Square Online is the best choice for flexibility. This platform is suitable for practically any large, medium, or small business. You can use this platform to sell physical and digital products in person or online stores. In addition, the ecommerce store builder offers limitless features to run an ecommerce business, such as selling, customer management, and inventory tools.

Where to Start

Many beginners are not tech-savvy and may be anxious about building an ecommerce website. However, there is nothing to fear. You have limitless resources at your disposal to get your ecommerce business up and running.

There are steps that every ecommerce business must take to open up shop. The only differences in these steps relate to the business types, sizes, and website building experience. These factors will help you choose the building platform that’s right for you.

We’ve researched and provided the best ecommerce website builders, and your first step is to choose an online ecommerce platform. You will also need to create and register a domain name. Several ecommerce site builders in this article offer free 1-year domain registration.

Take advantage of all the help that the platform has to offer. Follow the directions carefully and use the tools to set up your website. Choose a theme that coordinates with your brand. Next, add your products and relevant, eye-catching images to your site. Finally, pay close attention to spelling and grammar in your product descriptions.

Every ecommerce enterprise runs into challenges. However, you don’t have to face them alone. Online store builders offer customer service support, and some provide help 24/7. Get help and advice from all available resources. You will be a successful seller before you know it.

End Your Search for the Best Ecommerce Website Builders

We looked carefully at the features, pros, and cons of each of these ecommerce platforms. The online store builder that stands out as the best ecommerce solution is Wix ecommerce.

Wix lets you create professional templates with their drag-and-drop builder. You can also choose to exercise your creative freedom and design your site from a blank canvas. All of this is combined with excellent advanced features and quality customer service.

Whether you are a beginner or seasoned seller, Wix will get the results you want. Try out Wix for a low monthly cost. The basic plan for this website builder starts at just $23 per month.

The ecommerce builders in this guide were selected for the quality of their services and excellent features. We’re sure that one of them will have what you need. Present your store to the world in the best possible light. Use the information in this article to help you select the ecommerce site builder that will level up your success.